Lens: Voigtlander nokton 50mm f1.1
Camera: NEX-7, ISO3200, f1.1, 1/60, raw
I met Edoardo (the guy with the black hat) in high school. We were in the same class (here in Italy we don’t switch class depending on subjects, once we are divided into classes we follow all the subjects with the same classmates), and we became friends at the very first day of school. Since that day we’ve spent many hours playing video games, role play games, watching movies, dating girls, and having fun together. We even celebrated our birthdays together many times, since we were born with just a day of difference. That is, Edoardo is a day older than me.
If all the time spent together during (and after) school wasn’t enough, we happened to spend much of summer holidays together too. And here is where Massimo comes in the picture (the guy with the green hood). Massimo’s family owns a seaside-house very close to where my parents do. And Massimo is a friend of Edoardo since they were little kids. Edoardo used to come to my seaside house during summer for a week, and then to move to Massimo’s place for another week or two, so we spent a lot of time together. Again, we played some video games and role play games together, but mostly during those old summer days we chased girls and had fun on the beach.
I’m really glad I had a chance to know Massimo Berruti when we were kids because he’s now one of the best photographers around. If you look at the under-35 reportage photographers, I really think you may end up listing him in the top ten. I’m talking about Word Press Photo awards and Eugene Smith fellowships here, I’m talking about serious photography.
We had a wonderful night. Massimo is rarely home, usually somewhere far and dangerous collecting stories with his incredible photos. He hadn’t met Diego, Edoardo’s baby, yet, so we organized this little reunion at Edoardo’s place, in the countryside near Rome. Here we are, having a smoke after dinner, Edoardo showing us the boundaries of his property, Claudia coping with the biting cold of countryside winter, and Massimo enjoying the smoke and the night. I simply wish we’ll be able to repeat the event as soon as possible, because I have so many questions to ask and so many stories to listen to.
Great picture as always Luca! I don’t write comments very often, but I’ve been looking your pictures a lot. I really love how you use large areas of black in your pictures and always have that bright white light there as well (recently: 341, 334, 333, 332!). I’ve been trying to achieve something similar, but haven’t been very succesfull. In fact I did couple of pictures what I call ‘Luca-like-pictures’, but with my own way of seeing subjects – doesn’t they say that imitation is the highest form of flattery. Find them here: http://www.pixelem.fi/10000/luca-like.jpg. Any advices you could give me when it comes making more ‘Luca-like-pitcures’ in future?
Hi Tony, thanks for your nice comments 🙂
I like both your “luca-like” shots! The first one would have been more interesting if some light would have hit the head of the central subject. right now it is too big and dark, and I’m not sure it really works. The second one is probably just too bright. Try to reduce a bit the exposure (did you shoot in raw? if not, you should, it helps a lot with this kind of photography) and you should immediately see the face emerging from the darkness 🙂
I hope this helps…
cheers!
Thanks for your detailed answer, I’ll try your advices as soon as I get home!
I’ve started photography as hobby only 7 months ago and I’ve really found your blog inspiring (see the best of my first 10000 shots: http://www.pixelem.fi/10000/html/kuvat/index.htm). When looking for inspiration one could always look for old classics, but they don’t speak to me as much as looking your photos. Maybe it’s because I find your work modern and classics are just that classics. So Luca Rossini is my first photography-artist that I’ve feel inspired by. I think thats a nice compliment, because first strokes on empty canves are always the most meaningfull ones. But to be clear, I dont aim to be pro, artist or anything, I just appreciate good photography.
I know you are about to end your blog and I feel sorry for that. I really really hope you put up something similar in near future. And please, do a list of ten best pictures of this Nex-project and share your thoughts about them. I really hope you succeed with the path you’ve chosen. You feel such a nice guy – you’ve earned your karma-points and you deserve the success. 🙂
Hey Tony!
For being just 7 months that you are into photography, you surely have an interesting eye. My advise would be to study composition on this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Photographers-Eye-Composition-Digital/dp/0240809343/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358774311&sr=8-1&keywords=the+photographer%27s+eye
Then shoot a lot but keep only the ones in which you “see yourself”. This will help you figure out what you want to tell with your photography. This is very important, any art has to “tell” something, if it doesn’t then, in the best scenario, it is merely didactic or documentary. A few months ago one of the most famous fashion photographers (he’s Italian, by the way) told me about my shots: “In all of them I perfectly see what you had in front of your camera, but just in a few I see who’s behind the camera.”
Yeah, this blog is going to its end, but not my activity as a blogger. Many followers are asking for dedicated, didactic posts on some of the images of the project, and I really would like to answer this request. I have another blog, which currently hosts just one post, which should collect all the tutorials and stuff about mirrorless photography: https://www.lucarossini.it/category/life-without-mirror/
Also, I’m working on starting other blog-projects, one of which is almost settled (and very exciting). As soon as I can tell you more I promise I will.
Finally, thanks for your super nice words. I know this project created some sort of connections with you fellows which goes beyond pure interest in my photography. I really want to keep this communication channel open as long as possibile 🙂
cheers!
Thanks for your thoughtfull advice. I’ve actually red couple of Freemans book and I think they are one of best when it comes to general photography books. I like many of his pictures too, but they don’t have that personal touch you have – they are more of photojournal stuff. Nevertheless, I find his books very useful, it just takes some time and more experience to really digest what he is saying. As I haven’t yet read that particular one, photographers eye, I’ll take that next.
As for your other advice, I find it is really one of the best given to me and touches me at the moment when I’m trying to understand why I take such a pictures as I take, what is good/bad and what I’m trying to do. Thank you for this.
ps. as a return gift I advice you to pick up ‘Fields’ named cd from artist called ‘Junip’, or if in internet, search for song ‘In Every Direction’ by Junip and start from there. Everytime I read your blog and your thoughs, it reminds me of this record. 🙂
So, I finally had time to check this Junip band out, and I loved it. Thanks! Also, it’s great to find out that my photography recalls post/psychedelic rock moods, because this is exactly the mood I want to convey with my work: reality as we intend it it’s an illusion, just one of the infinite possible representations of an otherwise incomprehensible world… 🙂